And Baby Makes Four
by Zesty Bod
Summary: In which Zelena enacts her curse, Regina wakes up pregnant and Emma can't seem to stay away. Set halfway through 3x20, "Kansas."
1. Chapter 1

**Long A/N to start: It's been a really long time since I wrote fanfiction and I apologize for that. I took some time to complete my novel and now that it's in the agent-hunting phase, I'm back to my first love. I know I still need to finish "Dear Elena," but I will admit I've been sidetracked by the pairing of Regina and Emma. This is my first crack at Swanqueen, so be gentle. My life has settled into something of a rhythm so my hope is to update this every Sunday and dedicate some time to finishing "Dear Elena."**

Chapter 1

 **Storybrooke**

Before she even opened her eyes, Regina knew something was wrong. She was in her bed, that much she was sure of, because although it was too dark to see anything, she knew the feel of her sheets and the smell of her comforter. She was in her own room, so the curse must not have worked. But something was off because as she lay on her back, she felt a sudden discomfort like there was a weight on her chest. She rolled to her right side and nearly yelped in pain at the way her lungs seemed to collapse. She rolled to the left side, finally finding a position that she could tolerate, but she noticed how long it took her to turn over. She felt big and slow and entirely not like herself, like someone had strapped a thirty-pound weight to her. Before she could turn on the light and investigate, though, she heard Henry call for her.

"Mom!"

His voice was panicked, and Regina threw off her covers and jumped out of bed. She groaned at the way the sudden movement nearly made her fall over, but she kept moving until she had thrown her door open and she was face to face with Henry. Or at least some young man who looked like Henry. Seemingly over night, her son had grown at least a foot taller and was looming over her for the first time in their lives. He had peach fuzz growing above and below his lips and her mouth dropped open in shock.

"Henry?" she asked, unable to comprehend that her little boy had changed this much over one night.

"M-Mom?" he asked, and oh God, his voice was deep and manly. His huge eyes dropped to her abdomen and he said, "you're pregnant!"

For the first time, Regina's own eyes fell to her stomach and a nauseating wave hit her because she was, indeed, pregnant. If the way her stomach protruded was any indication, she was quite pregnant in fact. At least five or six months along. Regina blinked repeatedly, and then she felt like she might pass out. She swayed on her feet, and Henry jumped and caught her before she hit the floor.

"Whoa, be careful, Mom. You don't want to hurt the baby."

The baby. Those two words went around and around Regina's head like water swirling a drain but never disappearing. Henry was saying something as he walked her back to her room, but Regina didn't hear any of it. All she could think about was that she'd gone to bed normally and had woken up very much with child. How did it happen? Who was the father? How was it even possible, given that she'd taken a potion to prevent her from ever being able to carry a baby? Henry helped her sit on her bed and she was able to get out of her fog long enough to nod when he asked her if she wanted him to make breakfast. He left, and she sat in the darkness of her room, staring straight ahead at nothing and trying to put the pieces together.

It was obvious that the curse had, in fact, been enacted and Regina didn't remember what happened. By the way he reacted, she knew that Henry didn't remember, either. So not only had Zelena enacted her curse but she'd done a forgetting spell, too. How unoriginal of her. Regina knew from the state of her body that they had been cursed for at least five or six months, but she gathered it was probably longer than that. A year? Two years? It was hard to gauge by looking at Henry because puberty could hit boys so suddenly that his appearance wasn't a good indicator of time.

She got up from her bed, slowly this time, and checked the clock on her bedside table. It was just after six in the morning. She turned on a lamp to light her way to the bathroom, and when she got there, she turned on all the lights and looked at herself in the mirror. Shock didn't even begin to describe what she felt when she saw her own reflection staring back at her.

Her hair was long like she used to wear it in the Enchanted Forest. Her normally slim face had filled in not to the point of making her fat but it was a noticeable change from her usual. Her eyes trailed down her nightie, where bigger breasts than she'd had all her life strained against the top that was made for a woman with a small bust line. And below those breasts was a high and round stomach. It swelled so much that her nightie a few inches shorter in the front than it was supposed to be.

With a shaky hand, Regina lifted the front of her nightie and gasped when she saw her stomach uncovered. Her innie belly button had popped out, and the skin of her stomach had stretched to accommodate its temporary guest. The skin was tight, with no stretch marks, but there was a long dark line down the center of her stomach. Regina marveled at it for several minutes before she slowly and gently ran her hand over it. She bit back tears, both from being suddenly pregnant when she never wanted to be and from the beauty of it. She was overwhelmed with a flurry of emotions: confusion, anger, amazement and a small amount of curiosity about how all of this would play out.

She didn't know how long she stood there but she snapped out of her own thoughts when she heard the doorbell, followed by the muffled sound of voices. She magicked herself into some different clothes and frowned when she was unable to conjure an outfit that hid her protruding belly. She sighed and finally gave in to the fact that she would have to wear maternity clothes, and she settled on a top that hugged her new larger breasts and flowed down loosely over her midsection and jeans with the elastic band. She took her time brushing her teeth and hair and washing her face. When she felt at least a little more like herself, she ventured downstairs.

She came around the corner to her kitchen but stopped when saw that baby Neal, who had just been born as far as she could remember, was walking around and holding his own cup. Snow, who was perched on a bar stool at the counter, looked close to tears as she said, "it happened again. I missed another baby's first steps, first word, first everything."

"Snow, it's gonna be okay," David said with a reassuring rub on her back. "We'll get these memories back just like we did before."

"What does Regina think?" Snow asked, sending a hopeful look Henry's way.

"Uh…" His eyes got wide like he didn't know what to say, and she knew he was wondering if he should break the news to them or not.

"Where is she is anyway?" Emma asked.

At that point, Regina gathered her courage, stepped into the kitchen and cleared her throat. Everyone turned to her and three jaws hit the floor at once.

"Oh my God," David breathed.

"Regina! You're…you're…" Snow shook her head in disbelief, and it was Emma who finished the thought.

"Holy shit, you're pregnant?"

Regina squirmed under the intensity of their gazes and then straightened her back and nodded.

"It would appear that way."

Emma's eyes widened even more and she said to nobody in particular, "what is with people waking up pregnant after curses around here?!"

"It does seem to be a rather disturbing trend," Regina said, and she glided as much as she could to the counter and thanked Henry with a nod of her head as he slid her a plate of eggs and toast.

"Do you have any idea how this happened?" David asked, still gaping at her.

"I have no memories of it at all. The last thing I recall is Snow giving birth and Zelena attempting her curse."

"So you don't know who the father is," Snow determined.

Regina rolled her eyes because only Snow would think that was the most important part of this whole debacle. "Obviously I don't know that. Unless something drastic changed during the curse, I suspect that the father is Robin but who knows what Zelena made happen?"

At the mention of Robin's name, Regina felt a niggling sense of… _something_ …in her veins. It was a feeling she couldn't quite put her finger on but it twisted her stomach like when she was feeling uncomfortable. Or jealous. But neither of those emotions fit the situation so she disregarded it.

"As soon as I finish eating, I'm going to confront my dear sister about what happened."

"Not by yourself," Emma said immediately. "Not like that."

"I am not an invalid, Miss Swan."

"No, but you are pregnant and that's damn close."

Regina wanted to argue with her, but she didn't. There were too many thoughts swirling in her mind to fight with Emma and the truth was that the blonde was probably right. It was unwise to talk to Zelena alone in any situation, and doubly so while she was vulnerable.

"Fine," Regina said grudgingly.

She ate her breakfast and contributed little to the rest of the conversation while the others tried and failed to recall anything from the past year or so. When Regina had eaten enough to the satisfaction of Emma, Henry and Snow, she and Emma headed out to the car to go see Zelena. Throughout the ride, Emma's eyes sneaked over to Regina and landed on her stomach.

"Miss Swan, do try to keep your eyes on the road lest you kill us both."

"Sorry. It's just you being pregnant is…"

She didn't finish the thought and Regina narrowed her eyes.

"What, you can't possibly imagine who would want to knock up the Evil Queen?"

"No." Regina snapped her head in Emma's direction and the Sheriff quickly added, "I mean no, that's not what I meant."

"Then please tell me what you did mean."

"I meant to say that pregnancy looks good on you."

That caught Regina off guard and she blinked a few times before asking, "what?"

"You know how they say pregnancy gives women a certain glow? I mean, I never had it. When I was pregnant with Henry, I had horrible breakouts and looked like a freak for nine months. But you…you definitely have that glow. It's nice."

Regina didn't know how to respond to that, so she didn't. They drove the rest of the way in silence and when they got to Zelena's farmhouse, Emma got out first and opened the door for Regina. The mayor was thinking about commenting on how she did not want to be treated like a delicate flower, but she knew Emma wouldn't listen so she didn't even waste her time on it. They got up to the front door and Regina blew it open with magic. They found Zelena in her kitchen, sipping tea and being totally content.

"Well, well, well," the redhead said with a a wicked grin. "What have we here? You've been busy, Regina."

"Cut the shit," Regina snapped. "What the hell did you do to me?"

"Oh, sister, I can assure you that I had absolutely nothing to do with _that_ ," she said, gesturing to the pregnant stomach.

"You cursed us and made us forget what happened. I deserve to know how I ended up pregnant."

"Would you like a diagram? I'm told that when two people love each other very much, they give each other a very special hug, and…"

"Shut up," Emma said.

That only made Zelena smile. "Oh, Regina, do train your pet to mind her manners."

"I want my memories back," Regina said.

"Then I'll suppose you'll have to get them the old fashioned away: true love's kiss."

"Great idea. I'll go kiss Henry right now."

"Uh, uh, sorry love, not this time. I may not be able to keep true love's kiss from breaking a curse, but I can dictate what kind of kiss will do the job. And for you, my dear sister, it must be of the romantic sort."

Regina's jaw clenched. "My romantic true love died years ago. You know that."

Zelena feigned surprise. "Did he? Oh dear, then I suppose you'll never know, will you?"

Anger flooded Regina's veins and her natural reaction was to raise her hand and summon a fireball. But at as soon as she did, Emma grabbed her arm and said, "don't. It's not worth it. And we don't know what using magic might do to the baby."

"It hasn't done anything so far, has it?" Regina snapped.

Emma rolled her eyes. "Oh, you mean when you opened the door? Somehow I don't think that requires as much energy as trying to kill Zelena."

Regina very nearly told her that she'd also used magic to change her clothes, but she swallowed those words because they didn't exactly help her case. She extinguished the fire and lowered her hand slowly, and Zelena smiled like the cat who caught the canary.

"Yes, darling, listen to your pet. You wouldn't want to hurt your unborn child, would you? Especially when it's your only chance to be a real mother and not just a placeholder until someone better comes along."

Emma stepped in between the two of the them and gently took Regina by the shoulders.

"Let's go," she said. "She's just trying to rile you up."

Regina stared the redhead down and only fought back a little as Emma directed her out and back into the car. She took a deep breath as they drove away and calmed down a tad.

"She definitely knows what happened," she said when she didn't feel like she might commit murder anymore. "I can tell from that stupid grin on her face that she knows exactly how I ended up like this."

Emma's hands tightened on the wheel and her green eyes flitted to Regina's stomach once or twice.

"You don't think she let some guy…" She waved her right hand around. "You know…"

"Force himself on me?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know." The mayor looked out of the window at the passing scenery. "She is a vindictive bitch, so it wouldn't surprise me." A flash of another emotion that felt like a twisted combination of rage and sadness settled into her stomach, and she felt the need to smooth over the statement even though she wasn't sure why. "But probably not. She was too pleased with herself. Letting some stranger have his way with me wouldn't suit her purpose, I don't think."

"And what is her purpose?"

"As far as I can tell, to make me miserable."

"Getting pregnant by a stranger and not remembering it doesn't make you miserable?"

Regina sighed and said, "it could be worse, I suppose. The father could be one of those awful dwarves." She looked at Emma with wide eyes and asked, "oh my God, what if it's one of the dwarves?"

Emma pressed her lips together in a miserable attempt to keep her laughter to herself.

"Are they even, like, you know, equipped for that?"

Regina did not attempt to hold back her laughter, and it came out in a loud, head-rearing huff of throatiness. "Are you seriously asking me if dwarves can have sex?"

"You brought it up!"

And for one stress-free moment, they laughed together. Regina noted then that she wasn't sure she'd ever seen Emma smile so genuinely and it wasn't an entirely unpleasant picture. When the laughter died down, though, her thoughts inevitably went back to her pregnancy. She eyed the trees passing by and remembered something.

"Would you mind dropping me off near the town line?" she asked. "I need to speak to Robin and that's usually where they are."

That deep, uncomfortable sensation flashed through her again but was gone before she could figure out its cause.

"You want me to just leave you in the forest?" Emma asked with a wary look.

"You are aware that I can walk?"

"And you're aware that your crazy ass sister has been using flying monkeys to kidnap people?"

"Don't you think if she wanted to kidnap me, she would have done so by now?"

Emma gave her a disapproving look but drove to the town line anyway. She didn't walk Regina out, although the brunette could tell she was itching to. She did roll down the side window and call out, "do you want me to wait for you to get back?"

"I'll be fine. I can use magic."

"For all we know, your magic's all wonky and you could transport yourself halfway across the country."

"Miss Swan, I think I can handle it."

Emma rolled her eyes and didn't move her Bug until Regina was well out of sight. Regina wrapped her arms around herself, in a way she wasn't sure was protective or her or the fetus, but she forced herself to drop them when she came upon Robin's camp. One of his Merry Men saw her first and he tapped Robin on the shoulder. When Robin turned, his eyes got huge and his mouth fell open.

"Regina?"

He ran to her and gently put his hands on her shoulders and looked at her stomach.

"Are you all right?"

"Fine. Just a bit pregnant, as I'm sure you can see."

He opened and closed his mouth several times before shaking his head.

"I don't know what to say," he admitted.

"Neither do I."

"Do you recall anything of what's happened?"

"Nothing. You?"

"I'm afraid not."

They stood staring at each other and Regina was at a loss for words. She liked Robin and knew that he was her soulmate, but they'd only just started seeing each other in this realm and this was a lot to process.

"Listen, Robin, I…"

"Do you think the child is mine?" he asked, with eyes that almost looked afraid of her answer.

Regina swallowed hard.

"Honestly, I'm not sure what to think. But I do know that I care for you and that we were trying to make something work between us. I have no idea what happened while we were cursed or what Zelena's twisted mind dreamt up. I'd understand if you don't want to have anything to do with this."

"I'd like very much to have something to do with this," he said, shocking her.

"What?"

"Regina, I realize that this is a different place and time but where I come from, men stepped up in such situations. I know that neither of us can know for certain at this point whether I'm the child's father or not, but I'd prefer to assume I am and be there to help you than to stay away and later regret not being involved."

Intense relief washed over and she swayed on her feet with it. She smiled at him and nodded.

"I'd like for you to be involved, too."

He smiled, too, and said, "then perhaps we'd ought to give some thought to moving in together."

Suddenly, Regina felt like she was suffocating. It was too much happening at once with the baby and the curse and Robin inviting himself to move in. But she had been a queen before and she was a master of the Poker face. She managed a smile and small nod.

"I'll certainly think about it."

Robin smiled and kissed her cheek and she was on her way. She poofed herself back home and started to pour herself a very tall glass of cider before she remembered that she couldn't drink. Her hands shook as she sat in her study and replayed the whole horrible day. Henry popped in twice, once to ask if she was okay and then again to ask if he could order pizza. She realized then that she hadn't moved from her spot in the study for hours and she wordlessly nodded her head. The next time someone was in the room, it wasn't Henry.

"Hey."

Regina turned and saw Emma looking at her, clearly unsure of if she was welcome or not.

"Hey," she said back.

"Henry called me. He said you were sitting in here by yourself and let him order pizza. I think he's concerned that you're having a mental breakdown."

Regina smiled just a little and said, "I'm not sure that's completely inaccurate."

Emma eased into the room a little more.

"You want to talk about it?"

"I don't know."

"Okay." The blonde took a seat on the couch opposite Regina. "'Cause you know, if you did want to talk about it, I can relate to what you're feeling. I don't know if you know this, but I'm kind of familiar with unplanned pregnancies."

Regina looked into Emma's ridiculously genuine Charming eyes and felt herself talking, even though she wasn't sure she wanted to admit some of the things in her head.

"I never wanted this," she said quietly. "Being pregnant, I mean. I thought I did when I was younger because I was in love with Daniel, but after that, I took a potion for the specific purpose of making me unable to have children. So to wake up one day like this is just…"

"Overwhelming."

"Yes." She fiddled with her slim fingers and wished like hell that she could have some cider. "I know that there are plenty of women out there who'd give anything to be able to be pregnant, but I'm not one of them. Does that make me a bad mother already?"

"No." Emma reached over and took Regina's hands in an uncharacteristic display of physical support. "It doesn't. At all."

"I feel completely unprepared," she went on. "Not only for the physical demands of pregnancy, but to be a mother again. I'd been okay with the idea of raising Henry and being done with the whole thing and now…now there's going to be this little baby that wakes up all night and cries for no reason and needs diapers and formula and…" She stopped herself because she felt the annoying sting of tears in her eyes.

Emma moved so that she was on her knees in front of Regina, still holding her hands, still looking at her with doe eyes that probably got her what she wanted far more than she realized.

"You don't have to do this alone," she promised.

"Oh, and that's another thing," Regina said, as a few tears trickled down. "When I told Robin, he all but invited himself to move in with me! It's too much."

"So don't let him move in with you. There's nothing saying you have to do that."

"But what if this is his child, Emma? He's one of the rare men who wants to be there to help through this whole process and I can't just tell him no."

"It's not telling him no. It's telling him not right now. Give yourself some space to get used to this idea first. There's nothing wrong with that. Okay?"

Regina sniffed back some more tears and nodded. Emma smiled at her in a way that she didn't smile at anyone very often, and warmth spread through Regina's body. And then suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her stomach.

"Ouch!"

Emma jumped back. "What? What happened?"

Regina looked at her stomach disbelievingly and said, "she kicked me!"

"Who? The baby?"

"Yes. And for something that small, it really hurt."

"Awwww," was not the reaction Regina expected, but Emma said it and she was down on her knees again. She held her hand out and looked at Regina expectantly. The brunette nodded her head and Emma excitedly put her hand on the protruding belly and the baby kicked again. "Oh my God! I loved this part of pregnancy."

"You mean you enjoyed being batted around like a soccer ball?"

"I enjoyed knowing that Henry was alive and okay in there," she said. She kept smiling and rubbing and every time the baby kicked, she grinned and Regina frowned. Then a thought hit Emma and she said, "you called it 'she.' You said 'she kicked me.'"

"I did?"

"Yeah."

Regina thought about it briefly and said, "I guess in my head I've just assumed it's a girl."

Emma got a look on her face that could only be described as 'dreamy,' and then said, "that'd be nice, since we already have a boy. It'd be nice for us to have a girl."

At this, Regina got a Madam Mayor-esque smirk and asked, "us and we? Already planning to steal another one of my children, Ms. Swan?"

Emma's pale face flushed red and she finally took her hand away and stood up.

"No, I'm not. I'm just saying, you know. There are already two boys in the family and we missed Neal being a baby, so yeah, it'd be cool if it was a girl."

Regina didn't comment on how she was included "in the family," but she couldn't wipe the smile off her face.

"I'll let you get some rest now," Emma said. "Sleep while you can. It gets pretty rough at the end."

"I'll take that under advisement."

Emma nodded and turned to leave. Before she was out of the archway, though, Regina called, "Emma?" The blonde stuck her head in and Regina said, "thank you. For listening."

The smile was back and Emma said, "any time."

Regina watched her leave and noted that she felt better. Not perfect, not anywhere near prepared. But better. She didn't like depending on other people but she realized right then that Emma Swan might be a good person to lean on during this whole ordeal. And the thought didn't upset her nearly as much as it should have.


	2. Chapter 2

**Since there seems to be some confusion about how this relates to the first chapter, chapters marked as "The Enchanted Forest" are those that took place during Zelena's curse. I thought that was clear but I guess not. So make sure you note whether the chapter is happening in Storybrooke or in the Enchanted Forest. :)  
**

Chapter 2

 **The Enchanted Forest**

By the time she sun came up, Regina had already been at the stables for hours. She'd spent time with each of the Royal Horses, spending the most with the queen's favorite: a stubborn mare with auburn hair and a wild streak. She had just moved on to her own secret favorite, Pico, when she heard a familiar voice cry "Momma!" She spun around just in time to catch Roland as he threw himself into her arms and she made an exaggerated motion of falling over.

"Oh my Goodness! You've gotten so strong, my love," she told him and peppered his face with kisses. He laughed and she swept back his long brown hair. When she looked behind him, she saw Robin smiling at her.

"Your love?" he asked in his charming accent. "I thought that honor was mine."

"Well, my little love, then. How's that?"

"Yeah, 'cause Daddy's big and fat!"

The three of them laughed and Roland finally pulled himself away from Regina. Robin helped her up and they shared a soft kiss, which Roland made a disgusted face about.

"What are you all doing here?" she asked. "I thought you were taking Roland out to teach him to fish today."

"I am. I thought I'd teach him a bit of sword fighting as well."

"Sword fighting?" she asked, trying to hide her frown. "Isn't he a little young for that?"

"He'll have just a small wooden sword, nothing serious."

"Yeah, I'm gonna fight like a knight!" Roland said, and he ran up and down the stalls, making metallic sword noises.

Robin smiled and interlaced his fingers with Regina's. "How are you, love? You left quite early this morning."

"Yes, well, you know the queen likes to show up at the most unexpected times. I wanted to make sure that her horse is ready in case she wants to take her."

"For someone who cares for her precious animal so well, you think she'd treat you better," he said.

Regina didn't respond. She never did when Robin made such comments about the queen. It wasn't her place, and it wasn't his, either, and she knew the queen had ears everywhere…most of all, on her.

"I suppose I'll take the lad and let you work. Perhaps when you get home, Roland and I will have prepared a delicious feast for you."

"A girl can hope," she teased.

He smiled and called for his son, and after another round of hugs and kisses, she watched them walk off. She sighed deeply in contentment and went back to brushing her horses. She thought of the two of them, her two boys, and wondered if her father would have approved. After all, Robin was a thief and Roland was another woman's son. It wasn't exactly an ideal situation for a single woman to be living with a widowed man and his boy. Still, Robin was her soulmate, thief or not. She loved Roland and their little family and she was sure her father would have, too.

Her mother most certainly would have been appalled.

Regina didn't have time to go down the path of thinking of her mother because a loud scream snapped her from her thoughts. She ran from the stables and saw someone ride past entirely too fast on a horse that the person clearly couldn't control. The horse sped away and blonde hair flapped from the person atop it.

"HELP!" the person screamed. A woman, it sounded like.

"Emma!" another woman said, and Regina turned her head and saw a short brunette woman, holding a baby and looking absolutely terrified. A boy stood next to her with frightened eyes and a taller blonde man looked town between trying to go after the woman and staying the others. Regina didn't think twice before she hopped onto Pico and directed "let's go, boy."

The two of them took off like a ball shot from a canon and raced after the woman who looked like she might fall and kill herself at any moment. Regina rode as fast as Pico could take her, which was pretty damn fast if she said so herself, but the other horse was fast, too, and they were already so far behind. She managed to get close enough behind the runaway stallion to yell at the rider.

"You'll have to jump!"

The woman, who was holding onto the reins for dear life, turned and her head jostled back and forth like her neck might snap off.

"I can't!" she cried.

"Yes, you can! I'll catch you."

"You're too far!"

"Trust me!"

Regina pushed Pico harder but was unable to get any closer than ten feet. The blonde hesitated for too long and Regina saw that they were coming up on a canyon that separated this kingdom from the next.

"If you don't jump, you'll die!" she yelled.

"I'll die if I do jump!"

"Please! I'll catch you, I swear!"

Regina held out her hand and allowed a little bit of purple to flicker in them. The woman clearly saw it and Regina only hoped that when all this trauma ended, the blonde would forget it. It must have been enough to convince her, though, because she nodded her head unsteadily and started a countdown to ten. She was only on 4 when Regina saw how close they were to the canyon and she screamed "now!" And right then, the blonde let go of her reins and jumped with all the grace of a flying brick. Regina caught her in a magical stream and held her suspended in the air, just long enough for her to catch up. She released the woman once she could safely catch her on the back of Pico, and she immediately pulled up and stopped them before they took a death plunge. The other horse veered off in another direction and disappeared form sight.

Regina immediately got off the horse and helped the woman down. The blonde bent over and vomited on her own shoes. Regina patted her back and held her hair and tried to soothe her. Within moments, a carriage pulled up and the same people from before jumped out: the blonde man, the boy and the woman with the baby.

"Emma, oh my God!" the woman said as she ran to her. She held the baby in one hand and hugged the woman, Emma, in the other.

"Mom! Are you okay?" the boy asked. He raced to her, too, and the man followed until they were all surrounding her and asking about her well-being.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," Emma finally said. "I'm never getting on another fucking horse in my life!"

Regina was tempted to tell her that it wasn't the horse's fault that she had no idea what she was doing, but she bit her tongue because the way that the people were dressed and the fact that they had a carriage told her that they were of some wealth and therefore her superiors. When the group finally seemed certain that Emma was, in fact, okay, the man turned to Regina and smiled broadly.

"Thank you so much," he said. "We owe you everything for saving our daughter's life."

The brunette woman turned to Regina then, too, and she was in tears when she said, "how can we ever repay you?"

"You don't need to repay me," Regina assured. "I did what any decent person would have done."

"You did far more than that," the man said. "Most people, even the decent ones, wouldn't have put their own lives in jeopardy to save a stranger."

The boy then ran to Regina and hugged her so tightly that it was almost painful.

"Thank you," he said in a voice that cracked with puberty. "Thank you for saving my mom. She really sucks with horses."

A laugh bubbled out of Regina's lips and she returned the hug and said, "so I noticed." And it was then that Emma, the woman she'd risked her own life to save, finally looked up. Her long blonde hair was windblown around her head. Regina immediately noticed the resemblance between her and her parents: she had the same big expressive eyes as her father and the same jawline and chin from her mother. It was odd, certainly, that they all looked about the same age, but it wasn't the first strange thing Regina had encountered in the Enchanted Forest.

"Yes, thank you," Emma said quietly.

"Please come to dinner at our house tonight so we can discuss how we might repay this debt," the mother said.

"Really, you don't have to repay me in any way."

"Dinner," the woman insisted. "Please."

Regina realized there was no point in arguing, so she nodded and said, "all right."

"Is sundown acceptable?" the man asked. When Regina nodded, he asked, "where do you live? We'll send a carriage for you."

"The house just beyond the stables."

"Excellent. We'll see you tonight. Thank you again, Ms.…?"

"Regina."

"Regina," he nodded.

He bowed to her in a gesture that was completely uncalled for, and the family got back into their carriage and rode away. Regina thought about the incident as she rode back to the stables and she replayed it several times for the rest of the day. When she finally got home for evening, she was surprised to find Robin and Roland setting up their small table with plates full of fish they had caught that day.

"Look, Momma!" Roland said excitedly.

"Oh, it's perfect, my darling. Did you catch and cook this yourself?"

"All by myself," he said, poking his chest out proudly. Regina and Robin shared a smile, and she sat down and took the little boy into her arms.

"Roland, this is possibly the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. But I'm afraid I won't be able to eat with you all tonight."

"Why not?" Robin asked, his face marred with concern.

"There was a woman on a horse today. She nearly lost control and almost died. I saved her. Her family would like to repay me and asked me to join them for dinner tonight."

"That't wonderful, love. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she promised. "I just…they're sending for me shortly and I need to get ready if I'm going."

"Sending for you?"

A silent conversation passed between them in which they both knew that this family had money, and if there was some amount they were going to pay Regina, she really couldn't afford to say no. She and Robin were not exactly what she would call dirt poor, but she was certainly not in a position to turn down money.

"You should go," he said with a nod. "If the food doesn't keep, the lad and I will simply have to catch more tomorrow."

Regina took a few bites of her fish to appease Roland, and although it was not good at all, she pretended like it was the best thing she'd ever eaten. She excused herself to the bedroom and looked through her meager selection of clothes. She didn't see anything that would be truly appropriate for the occasion, as she had nothing fancy or of high quality. She picked up her best dress, a dark blue one that fitted her well but was ragged from many uses. She looked around the room to make sure she was alone, and she quickly did a spell to spruce the dress up some. Not too much, as she didn't want to give the false impression that she had any means, but enough so that the frayed edges were smoothed and the material looked new again. She bathed quickly and redid her hair in a long braid, and she was just finishing when she heard a knock on the door.

Butterflies attacked her stomach and she took a deep calming breath before she returned to the main room, where a short stout man was speaking with Robin.

"Momma, you look so pretty!" Roland said with a big grin.

Robin made a similar face and kissed her cheek.

"Quite lovely, darling," he said.

"Are you ready, Miss?" the short man asked, and she didn't miss the way he seemed to appreciate her appearance, too.

"Yes, thank you."

She followed him out after telling Robin and Roland not to wait up too late for her. She let the man, whose name she discovered was Leroy, help her into the plush carriage. Leroy closed the door behind her and took the reins at the front, and they were off. Regina spent the entire journey trying to calm herself down, although she wasn't exactly sure why she was so nervous because the family had seemed perfectly nice and genuinely thankful. She supposed that she was always wary of people, though, because of the queen. One never knew whose pocket the queen had her hand in.

When the carriage stopped and Leroy opened the door for her, Regina took in the sight of a stone house that could rightly be considered a mansion. Leroy walked her to the front door and when it opened, the brunette woman from earlier smiled earlier and said, "Regina! We're so glad you're here."

She pulled Regina into a tight hug, like they were old friends, and Regina awkwardly returned the embrace.

"I'm Snow," the woman said she pulled away. "I realized after we left that we didn't even tell you our names! How silly of us. Come and I'll formally introduce you to everyone."

She took Regina's hand and led her to a dining room, where an array of food was laid out that made Regina's stomach clench in hunger. Snow still held her hand and went around the table, pointing at people.

"That's my husband, David," she said, as the blonde man waved and smiled. "Our grandson, Henry." The boy who'd hugged the life out of her grinned brightly. "Our little son, Neal, is already asleep so maybe you'll see him next time." Regina held back a frown and wondered why the hell this woman thought there would be a next time. "And you remember Emma, our daughter."

Emma looked completely different from the woman she'd saved earlier in the day. Her wild hair was now tamed and braided neatly to one side, like Regina's in a blonde form. She wore a green dress that made her eyes stand out even from across the room, and she offered Regina an incredibly small smile and said, "hi."

"Hello again," Regina said with a little nod of her head. "It's nice to see you on your feet."

"Yeah, and this time without puke all over them!" Henry added.

"Henry," Snow admonished, but then she rolled her eyes at Regina as if he to say 'boys will be boys.' "Regina, please sit and tell us about yourself."

So Regina did sit. And she ate. And she told them as little about herself as she could get away with without sounding standoffish. Snow, David and Henry talked quite a lot about anything and everything, but Emma didn't say a word. She didn't eat much, either. In fact, she spent most of the dinner staring at Regina and then yanking her eyes away when Regina stared back.

"How'd you learn how to ride a horse like that?" David asked. "I'm certain that you have more skill than any man I've ever seen."

"I've been riding all my life," she said. "My father taught me. He was quite the horseman himself and he had no son to pass his knowledge onto, so I suppose it fell to me."

"Could you teach me how to ride like that?" Henry asked, looking at her with sparkling eyes that he blinked in faux innocence.

"Well, that would be up to your mother," she said politely.

All eyes turned to Emma, who just shrugged and said, "yeah, whatever."

"Cool! Can we start tomorrow?"

"Henry," Emma said with a frown, "you can't just ask somebody to drop whatever they're doing to play with you."

"I'm sorry but my job keeps me very busy throughout the week," Regina told Henry. "But if you do really want to learn, I don't work on Sundays."

Henry turned to Emma again and asked, "can I, Mom? Please?"

Emma hesitated and Snow cut in by saying, "I think it would be a fantastic idea. We could pay Regina for the lessons as a way to thank her for what she did for you."

Emma hedged again and Regina got the distinct feeling that the blonde woman didn't like her for some reason.

"Are you sure you really want to take that on?" Emma asked quietly. "Once Henry gets into something, he's kind of obsessed with it. He might start showing up at your job or something."

"I don't mind," Regina said honestly. "I'd love to teach him." She turned to the boy and said, "and I have a soft spot for boys named Henry. That was my father's name."

"It's fate," Snow said with a perky smile.

So they agreed on Sunday. When dinner was finished, Regina thanked them all for their hospitality and David shoved a bag of gold coins into her hand, even as she tried not to accept it. She didn't have to look inside it to know that it was more than she'd make in the whole year.

"This is too much," she told him.

"My daughter's life is priceless," he said, holding his hands over hers so she wouldn't relinquish the coins. "Trust me, no amount could be enough."

She finally accepted the bag and quietly said, "thank you." She turned to let Leroy escort her out, and everyone was surprised when Emma said, "I'll ride with you." The curious glances showed just how everyone had read Emma's reaction to Regina as negative, but she didn't offer any explanation and breezed past them and into the carriage. Snow and David seemed just as baffled as Regina and only offered shared glances of apology as Regina got into the carriage and Leroy closed the door.

They were halfway through the uncomfortably silent trip back when Regina decided to forego decorum. She turned to Emma and asked bluntly, "have I done something to offend you?"

"No."

"Then may I ask why you stared at me all night and yet refused to speak to me?"

She expected Emma to remind her of their different places in the social rankings, but instead the blonde said, "you used magic on me."

Regina's eyebrows shot up and she quickly turned away from the woman.

"No, I didn't."

"You did. Your hand glowed purple and you held me in the air until I could get on that horse with you."

"I'm afraid that in your trauma, you have imagined something that didn't happen."

And then, in the darkness of the carriage, Emma opened her hand and produced a small fireball. Regina sucked in a breath of shock and looked at the younger woman.

"You can do magic?" she asked quietly.

Emma nodded and closed her fist. "That's all I know how to do, though. I want you to teach me."

Regina scoffed. "Teach you? Don't you know the queen would have both our heads if she discovered this?"

"I won't tell anyone."

"How do I know that? How do I know that you aren't working for her?"

"You're the first person I've ever told about this," Emma confessed. "Not even my parents know. Please help me? I want to know how to control it because I'm afraid one day, I'll hurt somebody without meaning to."

Regina didn't say anything for a few minutes, as this was not the discussion she expected to have.

"How would this even work?" she asked. "How would I even have time to teach you?"

"We can act like you're teaching me to ride horses, like you'll do with Henry. Nobody will know, I swear."

Silence fell between them again.

"So all that staring tonight. It wasn't because you hate me?"

"Hate you?" the blonde asked, obviously confused. "How could I hate you? You saved my life. I'm sorry for staring. I guess I just…I've never met anyone else with magic and I didn't know how to ask you."

Regina thought about the request right up until the carriage stopped in front of her cabin.

"Yes," she said lowly. "I'll teach Henry in the morning and you in the afternoon. But I swear to you, if you breathe a word of this to anyone, I'll set you on fire."

She wasn't sure what reaction she was expecting, but it wasn't a smile. Emma nodded and before she left, the blonde grabbed her hand and a jolt of warmth went through her body.

"Thank you. I mean that."

"You're welcome." Regina allowed Leroy to help her out, but before he closed the carriage door, she said to Emma, "and you really are dreadful on a horse."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

 **Storybrooke**

Morning sickness was not a concern that Regina had considered. She was, after all, several months pregnant and it was her understanding that morning sickness was reserved for those women in the early stages. She had apparently understood wrong because it was not just for women in the early stages and it was definitely not relegated to the morning hours. She found that out the hard way when, at nine o'clock that night, she jumped out of her bed and ran as fast as her body could take her to the bathroom.

She vomited up what felt like everything she had ever eaten. When Henry came in to say goodnight and found her hugging the toilet and retching, he stayed with her and held her hair back. He became increasingly worried when the vomiting didn't stop, though. And when nine o'clock turned to ten, and ten into eleven with no end in sight, he went against Regina's pained whispers that she was all right and called an ambulance. She was so weak by the time the ambulance got to her house that she didn't even put up a fight as they loaded her into the back and got her hooked up to an IV.

The ride to the hospital was a blur of needles and throw-up and frantic calls from Henry to the rest of the Charming family. Regina was in and out of awareness as they wheeled her inside. She was so focused on trying to stop the spewing and the disgusting taste of dinner and lunch and breakfast as they made their way back up that she only heard bits and pieces of the conversation Dr. Whale was having with Henry and Snow.

"Regina is suffering from what we call hyperemesis gravidarum," he said. "Which is just a fancy way of saying extreme morning sickness. Some women get it, and we suspect that it's caused by the change in hormones during pregnancy. In Regina's case, she's experienced a severe swing in hormones because, at least in this realm, yesterday she was not pregnant and today she's quite pregnant."

"What we can do?" Snow asked, her face marked with concern.

"We're giving her fluids through her IV to ward off dehydration and we'll keep an eye out for any other issues. We've started her on some anti-nausea medication, so we'll see how that works before we try anything else."

Regina kept waiting for the medicine to work but it never did, and she spent the next few hours bent over the side of her bed, spewing into a bucket that Henry changed out every once in a while. She could hear the worried tones of Henry and Snow, but only became fully aware when Emma hurried inside.

"Sorry I'm late," the Sheriff said as she walked to Regina's bedside. "I was on the graveyard shift and my phone was out of charge. What's going on? She's been doing this all night?"

"Yeah, since like nine o'clock," Henry said.

"Emma," Regina said weakly. She held her hand out and Emma took it. "Please."

"Hey, it's okay. We're all here. They're giving you medicine and it'll be okay."

"It's not…" She tried to lick her dry lips but was frustrated to find out that she barely had any spit. "It's not…working."

"They've upped the dosage. You have to give it time to work."

"Hours," Regina groaned and then groaned again when she realized she hadn't said a whole sentence. She managed to sit back in bed and put Emma's hand on her stomach. "Magic."

Emma's eyes widened and she shook her head as she yanked her hand off Regina's stomach.

"Uh uh, no way, I'm not using magic on you."

"Please," the mayor whimpered.

"What if I hurt the baby?"

"You won't." Regina looked at her with an expression that she knew was pathetic by the way Emma frowned and pouted. "Please. Trust…you."

Emma bit her lip and turned to look at her mother and son. Snow fiddled nervously with her fingers but Henry nodded.

"Do it," he said.

"I could hurt Regina or the baby."

"My mom's already hurting and it can't be good for the baby for her to be throwing up like this. What if it doesn't stop?"

Emma looked at Snow with raised eyebrows, and Snow thought for a minute and then nodded shortly.

"If Regina trusts you with this, then she must know that you can help. You should do it."

Regina squeezed her hand again and despite her reservations, Emma decided to do it. She wasn't even sure what "it" was, but she put both hands on the swollen stomach and closed her eyes.

"Come on, kid," she said lowly, "stop hurting your mom."

Her hands glowed with magic and she slowly waved them over Regina's body from her stomach up to her head. And just like that, Regina felt relief. She almost cried at how good it felt not to be horrifically nauseous for the first time in hours.

"Thank you," she said, and Emma smiled at her.

Henry rushed over and gave Regina water and she rested for a bit until the morning shift started and a doctor who wasn't Whale came in. She was a woman with a bright smile and mercifully warm hands.

"Feeling better?" she asked.

"Yes. Finally," Regina said.

"Well now's as good a time as any to do what would have been your 20-week scan. We'll check to see how the baby's growing, get an estimate of the due date and find if it's a boy or a girl. Sound good?"

"Yes."

The doctor, who name tag read Ramirez, turned to everyone else and asked, "are you folks staying for this?"

"I think it's time for me to get home and give David a break with the baby. I can take Henry home if you want to stay," Snow said, looking between Emma and Regina.

Emma looked at Regina, who smiled a little and nodded, and she told Snow, "that'd be great. Get some rest, kid. I'll see you later."

Henry kissed both his moms and Emma scooted into a chair while the doctor got everything ready. Dr. Ramirez wheeled an ultrasound machine into the room and dimmed the lights. She exposed Regina's stomach and spread some warm jelly over the skin and started the ultrasound. Emma scooted up closer and, seemingly without thinking, took Regina's hand again while Dr. Ramirez took pictures and did measurements.

"Everything's looking nice and healthy," she said. "I'm getting consistent measurements of about 26 weeks, which means you've only got about three more months to go."

Regina had figured the situation was something like that, but to hear that she would be giving birth and mothering a brand new baby in just three months almost made her vomit again. She stiffened but then relaxed just a little when Emma squeezed her hand and offered a small smile.

"And if we could just get baby to turn around, we could see if we're looking for a hot dog or a hamburger."

Emma snorted, which made Regina smile in spite of herself, and then she yelped when Dr. Ramirez started pressing the ultrasound scanner harder and bouncing it up and down.

"That kind of hurts," she said.

"Sorry, just trying to get your little passenger to shift so we can see."

The next couple of minutes were totally silent as the three women all stared at the screen and waited, anxiously in the case of Emma and Regina, for the baby to turn. And when it did, Dr. Ramirez said, "ah ha! Hamburger!"

Regina blinked and felt a shimmer of excitement pass through her. "So, it's a…girl?"

"Yes ma'am. Congratulations."

"A girl," Regina repeated to herself.

"A girl," Emma said. And the grin on her face couldn't have been removed with a crowbar.

Dr. Ramirez wiped the jelly off Regina's stomach and turned her machine off. She smiled genuinely at the two of them and asked, "so how'd you guys decide which one of you would carry the baby?"

The responses were twin stares of confusion.

"I'm sorry?" Regina asked.

"My wife and I want to have a baby and we're trying to decide which of us should carry it. How'd you two decide?"

The implication of her question hit Regina and Emma at the exact same moment and Regina yanked her hand out of Emma's.

"Oh, no, we're not…"

"I carried the last one," Emma said as she took Regina's hand again. She grinned at the doctor and said, "it was her turn."

"Ah," Ramirez nodded. "Fair enough. Well, Regina, it looks like you're doing much better. I'll sign off on your release and send you home with some nausea meds. Do you have any questions for me?"

"Uh…no."

"Okay. I'll get you copies of the pics of your little lady before you leave. Nice to meet you two. Good luck."

When she walked out, Regina gave Emma the stink eye.

"Why did you let her think we were together?"

"Oh come on, didn't you see how happy she looked at the thought that there might be child-bearing lesbians in Storybrooke? I didn't want to crush her dreams. Besides, don't you think we'd be cute together?"

"Like I'd tolerate you."

"Please, if we were together, I bet I'd have you wrapped around my finger. You'd be cooking me dinner every night and picking up my clothes that I leave all over the floor…"

"I'd burn that hideous jacket and make you learn to cook for yourself."

"…I'd get to use all your fancy lotions and soaps…"

"I would not let you anywhere near my pristine bathroom."

"…I bet your bed is amazing. It's probably 1000-count sheets with a mattress like feels like it was made from clouds."

"That's correct but you'll never have firsthand knowledge of that."

"Are you sure?" Emma leaned in close and said with suggestive eyebrows, "lover?"

Regina pressed her lips together and tried not to laugh. She failed. Emma laughed, too, and it was the second time in as many days that they'd had an interaction like that, with real smiles and laughter and a sense of easiness that they'd never had before. A deep pleasurable warmth spread through Regina's body and the baby kicked her.

"She's kicking me," Regina said. "She seems to do that when you're around. I think she hates you."

"I think she loves me."

"Oh, yes, just like her mother."

"Exactly."

It was only when Robin's voice asked, "am I interrupting something?" that Regina realized how close her face had drifted to Emma's while they both grinned. She pulled back and tried to soften her smile and lifted her hand out to Robin.

"Hi," she said.

"I just received word that you've been ill all night," he said as he went to the side of the bed opposite Emma. "I'm so sorry that I wasn't here. I suppose I need to invest in one of those cellular devices after all."

"Might be a good idea," Emma said under her breath.

Regina gave her a sideways glance because she was pretty sure she'd never heard Emma mock someone. Her attention was drawn back to Robin when he asked her to explain what was going on, and once she was finished catching him up, he got a firm look on his face.

"Regina, I really think it might be best for me to be closer to you so I can be there in situations like this," he said. "I should be the one taking care of you."

She glanced back to Emma, who was looking down to pretend like she wasn't hearing the conversation.

"Let's talk about it later, okay?" she asked with a gentle smile. "I'm really tired right now and I'd like to get back home."

"Do you need a ride?" Emma offered.

"Yes, thank you."

The three of them sat together in something resembling awkwardness until Dr. Ramirez came back and released Regina with a prescription with nausea medication. Both Robin and Emma reached to help Regina off the bed, but then Emma backed off and followed behind the other two while they walked out to the Bug. Robin helped Regina into the front seat and after they were all buckled in, they rode back to Regina's house in silence. Regina sneaked a glance from Robin to Emma and couldn't help but wonder where the tension was coming from between the two of them. As far as she knew, they didn't have any problems with each other and she couldn't even recall a time that they had shared any significant interactions. She knew it was crazy to think so, but she felt like they were quietly fighting over her.

It was weird. And kind of flattering. But mostly weird.

When Emma pulled her car into the driveway, Regina turned to her and smiled.

"Thank you. And thank you for helping me. I can't tell you how much better I feel."

"I'm glad," she said, returning the smile. "I know you're all big and bad and Evil Queen-y but maybe take it easy for the rest of the day?"

Regina rolled her eyes. "Yes, _honey_."

Emma's smile broadened into a grin. "That's all I ask, _babe_."

Regina tried to smirk but ended up laughing a little and she waved Emma off once she and Robin were on the front steps.

"Have I missed something?" Robin asked as they walked inside. "Honey and babe?"

"Oh, the doctor thought Emma and I were lesbians."

He frowned a little. "Why would he think that?"

" _She_ was probably just projecting because she was a lesbian and Emma was there taking care of me." When he didn't look placated or amused, she cupped his face with her hands and said, "don't worry, Emma's strictly my side piece."

"Your what?"

Regina was spared having to explain the term when Henry ran in and stopped before he crashed into his pregnant mother.

"Mom, you're okay," he said happily.

"Yes, I'm feeling much better. Your sister's decided to give me a break."

His face lit up and she was sure she hadn't seen him smile that big since he was five years old and opening his Christmas presents.

"Sister?" he asked.

"It's a girl?" Robin asked with a similarly hopeful expression.

"It is."

"All right!" Henry said as he pumped his fist in the air. "I'm gonna spoil her so bad."

"I'm sure." She kissed Henry on the forehead and Robin on the lips and said, "I'm going to rest, doctor's orders. Come wake me for dinner if I'm not up."

She left them downstairs and sighed against her closed door when she was in her own room. She headed straight for the bathroom and spent at least ten minutes brushing her teeth. Then she luxuriated in a bubble bath for thirty minutes and nearly fell asleep to the sounds of an audiobook. She took her time toweling off and putting on pajamas, and when she got comfortable on the bed, sleep came easier than it had even before she'd woken up pregnant.

She didn't know how long she slept, but when she opened her eyes again, it was dark outside and she heard the sounds of voices downstairs. She changed into something presentable for company and when she went down, she found Henry, Robin, Roland, Snow, David, Neal and Emma all in her kitchen. Snow was feeding Neal and Roland while Emma and David sipped beers and Henry and Robin tried their best not to ruin the spaghetti they were making. Robin could hardly boil water and Henry really did know better but he'd obviously lost some of his skills living with Emma, who probably relied mostly on cereal and take-out for their nourishment.

They were ruining her kitchen, but the sight of them together in her home did something to Regina's heart that she hadn't felt in far too long.

"I sincerely hope you two aren't destroying my very expensive pots and pans," she said dryly.

Everyone turned to her and greeted her like she'd just gotten back from war, with a chorus of "hey!" and "how are you feeling?" and "I told them not to touch your stuff." That last one was Emma.

"Henry, are you teaching Robin to make our secret Mills family spaghetti?" she asked as she walked closer to them.

"I'm trying, but he's not very good at it."

Robin put his hand to his chest in mock hurt and said, "I'll have you know that I'm the most skilled of my men when it comes to cooking on an open flame. I'm simply unfamiliar with these strange instruments."

"Strange? That's a top of the line gas range," Regina told him. She stepped closer and opened her mouth to educate him even further, but then stopped in her tracks as the smell of the spaghetti sauce hit her nose like a punch to the face.

It was a smell that she usually enjoyed. She loved Italian food and sauce and onions and garlic and mushrooms and all the little extra things that she liked to add to give it that special something. But today, she didn't love it. At all. The smell of all those ingredients twisted her stomach and her hands flew to her mouth before she made a mess of everything.

"Are you all right, darling?" Robin asked.

It was as if the spaghetti sauce had unlocked the floodgates on her nostrils and suddenly she was attacked by every smell in the kitchen. As Robin got closer to her, it was the first time that she realized just how much he truly smelled like the forest. The scent of sticks and leaves and dirt clung to him and churned her sensitive stomach.

"No, no," she managed to say as she shook her head vigorously. She backed away from Robin, only to run into Henry. Sweet Henry who used to smell like Johnson & Johnson baby soap and Dreft detergent. Sweet Henry who had grown into a teenager and smelled like a revolting combination of Axe and gym socks. She pushed past her own son roughly, unsure of how much longer the cacophony of odors could coexist with her nose.

"Ginger ale!" Snow said, and she jumped up from a bar stool like a superhero. "We got you some from the store. Emma, where's the nausea medicine?"

Emma hurried out of the room to wherever the nausea pills were and Snow opened the fridge and tried to give it to Regina. But Snow smelled like birdseed. And David smelled like too much cologne. And both of the kids, as sweet as they were, stank of outside like they'd been rolling around in the dirt with puppies.

Regina turned to run the hell out of the kitchen before everyone in there went home wearing puke stains, and she ran right into Emma.

"Oh! Sorry! Are you okay? Here are your meds."

Emma tried to undo the top of pill bottle quickly but kept fumbling with it and cursing under her breath. Regina braced, expecting that she might finally spill her lunch, but she didn't. Because Emma didn't stink. She smelled like mango body wash and mountain breeze detergent and only the faintest hint of floral perfume that was much girlier than Regina would have ever guessed. She smelled… _good_. Really good. And Regina's instincts were to get closer.

She didn't think twice or stop herself before her body was reacting on its own and her hands reached out to still Emma's frustrated movements. She pulled the blonde closer and then buried her nose in Emma's neck and inhaled. She groaned at how good the other woman smelled and how instant the relief from all the other smells was. Regina kept inhaling slowly, like maybe it was possible to suck all the fragrance right off Emma's skin. When she'd had enough on one side, she slid her nose along Emma's neck and did the same thing to the other side. And when she was finished there, she grabbed Emma's hand, yanked her down, and sniffed her hair.

"Oh my God," Regina moaned. "You smell amazing."

When she was finally back to equilibrium and didn't feel like she was going to yack, she let Emma go and opened her eyes to find every jaw in the room on the floor.

"Uhhh," was all Emma could say. Her pale cheeks were pink with…embarrassment, maybe?

"What?" Regina asked. "Why are you all looking like that?"

"'Cause you kind of just molested Emma," Henry said, and his shock was slowly turning into a mischievous grin.

"I did no such thing."

"You kinda did, a little bit," Emma said, as her cheeks progressed from pink to red.

Regina felt a shiver of arousal pass through her and she frowned in confusion. There was no way in hell that she had gotten aroused from sniffing Emma. Relieved, yes. Aroused, no. Not really, anyway. So why the hell was she feeling like she'd just been massaged with very slow, thoughtful hands?

"Regina, love, perhaps it's best if you go back to rest," Robin suggested. "We'll have Emma bring you some crackers and ginger ale."

She looked around the room and realized that yes, perhaps she'd gotten a little frisky in smelling Emma but she refused to be embarrassed about it. She was pregnant, damn it. Pregnant women got a pass for any weird shit they did. At least she wasn't eating dirt or asking for someone to buy her some pickle peanut butter ice cream.

"Fine," she said with a huff.

She went up to her room, lay on the bed and promptly decided that she was bored. She pulled out her iPad and turned on Netflix, just to give herself something to do, and in a few minutes, there was a timid knock on the door.

"Come in, Emma," she called with a roll of her eyes.

Said sheriff appeared, carrying a tray of crackers, cheese and ginger ale. Regina also saw one of the nausea pills resting in the corner of the tray.

"Food delivery," Emma said. "You're not gonna, like, feel me up, are you?"

"Oh, ha ha," she said dryly. "You liked it."

Emma tried to busy herself with putting the tray down so Regina wouldn't notice her coloring cheeks again.

"I think you're taking this lesbian lover thing a little far, don't you?" she teased.

"I think that this is all your fault," Regina said, even as she started putting cheese on her crackers.

"My fault? How?"

"Your magic did this to me, I'm sure."

"How do you figure that?"

"Think about it, Emma. You have good magic. I have bad magic. The baby can probably feel my bad magic and wants to get the hell out of me, and when you used your goody-goody magic on her, she probably instantly loved you. That's why I felt compelled to be closer to you. Yet another child who prefers you to me."

Regina frowned at her own words because she really hadn't meant to take that route, but there it was. Emma frowned, too.

"Hey, slow down there, Debbie Downer. None of your kids prefer me to you." Regina gave her a pointed look. "Henry does not prefer me. Not anymore. He loves us both and he's allowed to, okay? And this kid definitely doesn't love me more than you and she never will."

"How do you know?" Regina asked, feeling inexplicably sad even as she stuffed her face with cheese.

"Because you're her mom. And despite everything that's happened, you're a really awesome mom and she's so lucky to have you."

Regina wasn't too fond of the way Emma's words nearly moved her to tears, so she looked away and nodded.

"Fine. But if you try to take her from me, I swear to God I'll kill you."

Emma rolled her eyes. "Right. Because you've been so good at that so far."

Regina scoffed and threw a cracker at Emma's head. "Trust me, dear, if I truly wanted you dead, you would be."

"Yeah, you're the big bad queen. Got it. Do you need to sniff me again before bed or are you good?"

A laugh escaped Regina's lips before she could stop it and she threw another cracker at Emma. The blonde smiled, ate both crackers and then stood up.

"Take your medicine," she reminded as she headed to the door. "I'll check on you tomorrow."

"You know, I much preferred it when I hated you."

Emma looked over her shoulder, smiled genuinely and said, "I much prefer it when you don't."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

 **The Enchanted Forest**

When Sunday came around, Regina wondered if she'd made a mistake by agreeing to teach Henry and Emma. Sunday was the one day of the week that she got to sleep until the sun came up and then spend time with Robin and Roland. But as she was making breakfast and watched Roland play with the same old toy he'd had for as long as she could remember, she knew that she had to make good on her promise so she could provide more for the little boy. She kissed both of them goodbye and by the time she got to the stables, Henry was there waiting for her. Leroy was posted up against his carriage and gave her a happy wave which she returned.

She spent the next couple of hours teaching Henry the basics of horses and riding. She was delighted to learn that he was a respectful, well-mannered and curious young man. Although she didn't actually let him get on a horse yet, she could tell that he was going to be a natural. He was enthused but calm and all the horses, even the wild one, took to him immediately.

The same could not be said for his mother.

After her lessons with Henry, Leroy took Henry back and promised to return with Emma within an hour. Regina had just enough time to eat a very quick lunch with Robin and Roland before returning to the stables, where Emma was waiting with big worried eyes. Regina quickly learned of the blonde that she absolutely no inclination for riding and was extraordinarily clumsy. In a span of ten minutes, she'd knocked over a water bucket, run into a closed stall and nearly gotten herself decapitated by standing too close to a horse and then spooking it.

"Oh, good God," Regina mumbled to herself.

She grabbed Emma's arm and dragged her into an empty stall and then pointed at a bench, where Emma slumped.

"Are you always this hopeless?" she asked.

"Kind of, yeah."

"It's a wonder you haven't set yourself on fire, then."

"Yeah, about that, can we get to the magic?"

Regina hushed her harshly and stuck her head out to make sure that nobody had heard them. When she was sure that Leroy was still at the carriage and nobody else was around, she spoke in a low tone.

"If you would please refrain from saying that out loud, it would be appreciated. I don't know about you but I much prefer my head on my shoulders and not on the ground somewhere."

"What are you so worried about? It's not like the queen can hear us."

"She has eyes and ears everywhere, I assure you. So if we could please use some other terminology…?

Emma looked around and then asked, "okay, what can you tell me about _horses_?"

Her eyes sparkled like she had come up with something oh so clever and Regina couldn't help but think that she looked somewhat adorable. She left the stall long enough to retrieve Pico, and when he brought her back, Emma nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Relax," Regina said. "He's very sweet. He saved your life." She took a brush and began to run it along Pico's black mane.

"Now, the first thing to know about _horses_ is that before you get on and ride one, you have to build a relationship. You have to learn to trust your horse and it has to learn to trust you. Riding," she said with a tone that made sure Emma knew that she was really talking about magic, "is all about emotion. If you're calm, your horse will be calm. If you're upset or anxious, your horse will be erratic and uncontrolled."

She brushed Pico for a little while, hoping to show Emma how to be calm and methodical, and then she asked, "how did you learn how to…?" She gestured to her hand.

"It just sort of happened one day," Emma said.

"What were you feeling at the time?"

The blonde's face clouded. "Anger."

Regina cocked an eyebrow, curious about whatever put that look on the other woman's face, but she didn't ask.

"Is it always anger that brings it out of you?"

Emma thought about it for a second and said, "yeah, I think it is."

"Anger is certainly a strong emotion, but it's volatile. You should try to focus on another feeling. Like happiness or love or…" 'Lust' came to mind but she bit it back. She patted Pico and then stood in front of Emma. "Close your eyes and think of something that makes you happy."

Emma obediently followed the instruction.

"Take a deep breath," Regina said. "Envision a scene that makes you happy and calm. Are you envisioning it?"

It took a moment before the blonde nodded.

"All right. Now channel that feeling into your… _horse_."

Regina could tell from the look of concentration on Emma's face that she was trying to do just that, but nothing happened. Her hands didn't light up in even the smallest flicker of a spark.

"Are you thinking?" she pressed.

"Yeah."

"But you don't feel anything?"

Emma popped an eye open and disappointedly shook her head.

"Okay, let me try something." Regina sat down next to her and took her hand. "Try again and this time, I'll give you a boost with my own magic."

Emma closed her eyes again and concentrated, and Regina felt warmth emanating from her palm. She sent a little pulse of her own magic through Emma and expected the other woman to get a jump start. What she did not expect was such a strong blow back of their combined magic that it nearly knocked her off the bench.

Emma's eyes flew open and their gazes locked as the energy passed between them. Heat crawled up Regina's spine and she was overwhelmed by a sense of familiarity for the woman next to her, a person that she'd only met a few days earlier but who she now felt inexplicably close to. She couldn't say how, but she _knew_ Emma. And underneath that knowledge was trust. And fondness. And not a small amount of what felt eerily like desire.

At that, she yanked her hand away and stood up abruptly.

"I think that's enough for today," she said.

"What the hell was that?" Emma asked with wide eyes. "That, that feeling?"

"Nothing, it's perfectly common when two people share magic," Regina lied.

"Then why are we stopping?"

"Because that's enough for today and I'd prefer not to push my luck being here when I don't have to be. Think about what I told you. Practice on your own using something other than anger. We'll try again next week, all right?"

Emma gave her a hard, scrutinizing look. But then she nodded and stood.

"Yeah, okay."

She walked past Regina and gave a wide berth to Pico, and Regina steadfastly did not let her eyes roam to the back of Emma's pants. Guilt flooded her body and she reminded herself that she was with Robin, her soulmate. He was a good, honorable man and they'd made a life together with a little boy that she loved dearly. It wouldn't do to have stray thoughts about another person, no matter how cute she was.

 **...**

 **Storybrooke**

Extreme morning sickness and supernatural sensitivity to smells were not the only gifts that pregnancy bestowed upon Regina. Over the next two days, she was also hit with the trifecta of clumsiness (she'd run into three doors, a counter and banged her funny bone on the fridge handle), mood swings (she'd snapped at Henry for placing his plate too heavily on the counter and then cried for five minutes about being mean to him), and body pain. Oh, the body pain.

For someone who'd been slim and trim her whole life, an extra 22.4 pounds of weight was quite noticeable. Her lower back ached from her new center of gravity and it seemed as though she could feel every millimeter of her hips as they spread to accommodate a birthing canal for a soon-to-be human. It was that thought that led her to abandon her mayoral duties while she teleworked and she instead opened YouTube and searched birthing videos.

The results horrified her.

She was only halfway through a video when she quickly closed YouTube and instead searched Google for real women's experiences with the matter. The message boards were somehow worse than the videos.

"No, no, no," she said as she shut her computer and walked to the kitchen. She looked down at her stomach and said, "you'll just have to stay in there forever. I am not doing _that_."

"Not doing what?"

Regina yelped and spun to find Emma strutting into her kitchen with a bag from Granny's. She really shouldn't have been surprised, as Emma had taken it upon herself to be the official Regina Handler since she the only one who didn't make Regina want to barf all the time. Poor Henry had taken to washing his clothes twice and had changed his soap and deodorant to something less aggressively manly and far less offensive than Axe just so his own mother could stand to be within ten feet of him.

"Brought you a salad," Emma said.

Regina should have been happy with that, she knew, but the thought of eating another salad made her depressed. Her eyes tracked the grilled cheese sandwich that Emma pulled out for herself, and her mouth actually watered when she saw the golden brown bread that looked perfectly crispy. The cheese oozed out in a way that was almost taunting and Regina didn't realize she was staring until Emma snapped her fingers.

"Hello?"

"I'm sorry, were you saying something?"

"Only that you were staring at my sandwich like you want to make love to it."

"I was not!"

"Pretty sure you started drooling."

"As always, you're being ridiculous."

Regina made a show of grabbing her salad and violently stabbed a fork into it and ate it. It tasted like cardboard. She watched Emma as she picked up half of her sandwich and lifted it, letting the melted cheese stretch obscenely. Emma grinned and held it out.

"You sure you don't want some?"

"No. Some of us don't eat like kindergarteners."

"Yeah, some of us eat like old people."

Regina narrowed her eyes but couldn't tear her gaze away as Emma brought the sandwich closer and closer to her own mouth and just before she bit it, Regina reached out, snatched it, and took a savage bite. The moan that resulted would have been embarrassing if she gave a damn.

"Oh my God," she said with a nod of her head. She devoured the whole thing and took the other half without even considering that Emma might want to eat it herself. "So good."

"Wow, I guess I'll just eat this salad, then," Emma said with a disgusted face.

"You could stand to eat some greens."

Emma took a bite and winced like it pained her physically to eat.

"So what were you grumbling about when I came in?" she asked.

"I've decided that I don't want to give birth," Regina said, like she was making a royal pronouncement.

"You're a little late for that, don't you think?"

"The process seems terrifying and I'd prefer not to do it."

"What brought this on?"

Regina felt a small flush of shame when she admitted, "I may have watched a birthing video on YouTube."

"Ooh, rookie mistake."

"Yes, and then I compounded that error by reading horror stories from mothers online." She played with an apple in the fruit bowl on the counter and looked at Emma, feeling more vulnerable than she typically liked to be. "Is it really as awful as they say?"

The Sheriff drowned the salad in dressing and took a few moments to think before she said, "yep."

"Well, thank you, Miss Swan, for assuaging my fears."

"Look, I'm trying to be real with you. Friends don't let friends drive drunk or go into birth thinking it's gonna be kittens and rainbows. If you want that, go talk to Snow."

Regina frowned and twisted the stem off an apple.

"It just looks so painful," she said quietly.

"It is. It's the worst pain I've ever experienced in my life. But you know what? When it's all done, you'll have a sweet little baby in your arms and it'll be worth it."

"Will it? Because I don't feel any connection to it… _her_ …at all, Emma. What if I don't love her?"

Emma slid her salad to the side and reached across the table to cover Regina's hand with her own. She smiled softly and said, "you will. You're such a loving mom and you'll love her, even if you don't right now. Despite what you may want people to think about you, you have a huge heart and she'll have a spot in it."

Regina grumbled but didn't move her hand from under Emma's.

"I'll admit, that's not my only concern."

"Okay, what else is there?"

Regina hesitated because her next question was far more personal than she and Emma had ever gotten. But she had a source of knowledge right in front of her, so she decided to suck it up and ask.

"Will my area ever return to normal?"

"Oh yeah, of course. I mean you might have a few stretch marks but that's a badge of motherhood."

Regina rolled her eyes.

"Not _that_ area."

She waited for a few seconds for Emma to connect the dots, and when she did, the Sheriff's face turned beet red.

"Oh! Oh. Um yeah, it'll go back. That's kinda, you know, what it's made for, like, putting big things in and pushing big things out."

Regina realized then that as awkward as she felt, Emma was way worse. Her whole face was blushing and she was stuttering. The mayor grinned and slid down so she could speak lower.

"Putting big things in?"

"Shut up! You know what I mean."

"No, I'm afraid I don't. Could you explain?"

If possible, Emma got even redder.

"Oh my, Miss Swan, you truly are uncomfortable, aren't you?"

"Well it's not like we've had the kind of friendship where we just sit around talking about our vaginas!"

"Would you _like_ for us to have the kind of friendship where we sit around and talk about our vaginas?"

"You know what? You're an asshole."

"I'm sure there are plenty of people who'd agree with that statement."

Emma sighed and threw her hands up, looking down so Regina couldn't give her those judgy devious stares anymore. "Just, whatever. I'm sure after the baby's here, you'll go right back to your normal self and look as hot as you always do."

Regina's grin widened. "You think I'm hot?"

"Oh my God," Emma groaned.

Regina chuckled and then walked around the kitchen counter and sat next to Emma and bumped their shoulders together.

"I'm just teasing you," she said. "Thank you for bringing me lunch and telling me what to expect. If I'm being completely honest, I'm terrified of the whole thing. Teasing you gives me a little break from worrying about how this baby is going to rip me in half."

"She won't rip you in half, okay? It'll be fine. You can get an epidural and that'll help."

"Can't we just use magic?"

Emma frowned. "No. We don't know what magic might do to her. You'll have to suffer through this just like us average humans."

"You're hardly an average human, Miss Swan."

They fell into a companionable silence after that, with Emma munching away at the rest of the salad and Regina trying and failing not to envision the whole birthing process.

"There are exercises you can do, you know," Emma offered after a while. "For your whole…lady situation."

Regina snorted. "My lady situation?"

"Vagina is too clinical."

"And lady situation sounds like something Henry would say, since he's a teenage boy and all."

"Well what do you want me to say, Regina? Your delicate flower?"

Looking back on it, Regina would have no explanation for what she said next other than that for a moment, she was possessed by the Evil Queen. She leaned in close to Emma, too close probably, and said, "you could try 'my pussy' on my for size." Emma's eyes got as big as saucers, and that was the exact moment that Robin made his presence known.

"I should hope she's not trying it on, love," he said.

The two women jumped apart and Emma nearly fell off her barstool. Robin actually rushed over to help her, and she bumbled and fumbled and thanked him before the three of them stood in awkward silence.

"Well, thank you for lunch, Sheriff," Regina said with a stiff nod.

"Yep. See ya."

Emma hightailed it out of there and Regina smiled at Robin, who smiled back even though it was clearly fake.

"So it seems you're feeling better," he said.

"Yes, somewhat. The nausea has been traded in for other issues, but I'm okay."

He nodded and they looked at each other. Regina knew that he wanted to ask what he'd heard her say to Emma, but he was too polite to inquire.

"I'm sorry," she blurted out. "It seems like you keep walking in on Emma and me being inappropriate but I was just teasing her."

It was hardly an explanation, but Robin was clearly satisfied with it because his smile became genuine.

"It's all right," he said. "I understand. She's your best mate. We all need mates."

It took Regina an embarrassingly long moment to realize that he was using 'mate' to mean 'friend,' and not 'mate' like 'life partner.' It disturbed and confused her that her mind would even go there.

"Yes, well…" She stepped a little closer to him and realized that his smell hadn't sent her running for the toilet. He smelled…clean. Not like forest but like dryer sheets and mild soap. "I'm not nauseous around you."

He grinned and said, "Granny has allowed Roland and I free room and board at her inn for a few days and I took several showers in the hopes that I might not offend your senses."

Something in Regina's heart melted just a little, and she reached out and cupped his cheeks.

"You're definitely not offending my senses."

"I'm very glad of that."

His eyes looked hopeful that maybe she might make the leap from being happy that smelling him didn't make her puke to inviting him to make his visit a bit more permanent. She caressed his cheek again.

"Robin, I want you to know that I am thinking about your request to move in here. I haven't forgotten it and I'm not avoiding it. It's just…"

"Just?"

"I've never done this before," she admitted. "I've never _lived with_ someone, other than my parents and my son. Never a partner. Even when I was married to the king, we slept in separate rooms on opposite sides of a massive castle. I've never had to share my space, my life, with someone before. And to be honest, the thought scares me."

"That is not what I intended at all," he said, and he tentatively touched her waist and pulled her closer. "I simply wanted to be of assistance to you and I'd like to spend more time with you. If the thought of my moving here makes you uncomfortable, then we can forget I ever mentioned it. I'll make due with visiting you and being available whenever you need. And look!" He eagerly reached into his pocket and produced an ancient cell phone. "I even got one of those mobile devices so you can call me."

Regina laughed genuinely and leaned in to kiss him.

"You're a sweet man," she said. "And I don't deserve you, but I'm glad you're here."

"As am I."

They spent the rest of the afternoon together and then had dinner with Roland and Robin in something that felt very much like a family dinner. Regina enjoyed it, and it seemed like even Henry liked it, as he liked having a little brother to follow him around and play games with. When Robin and Roland finally left and Regina told Henry good night, she found herself resting on her bed, replaying the day. She smiled when she thought of her interactions with all her boys, and she looked around her big room that she'd had to herself for 30 years and wondered if it would be so bad to share it with someone.

Robin was kind, thoughtful and truly wanted to be there for her. She should have been jumping at the chance to have him be closer to her, but she was hesitating. And she could admit to herself that it was more than the fear of sharing her life with someone. Before she could think better of it, she pulled out her phone and texted Emma.

 _Do you think I should let Robin move in with me?_

She bit her lip and felt more anxious that she thought she would. There was an uncomfortable tightening in her stomach when Emma answered.

 _that's up to u_

Regina rolled her eyes.

 _Yes, thank you for the astute observation that my life choices are my own. I'm asking for your opinion, moron._

 _y?_

 _Why am I asking?_

 _yeah_

That made Regina hesitate. Why _was_ she asking? And why was she asking Emma?

 _Because although I will deny it to the ends of the Earth, I suppose one could construe you as my friend and friends discuss this sort of thing, don't they?_

 _wow, one could construe us as friends, huh? i can see y ur social calendar is so busy_

 _Would you stop being obtuse and answer my question?_

 _i think if ur having to ask me if u should do it, then u don't really want him to move in w/u._

It was a sobering answer, and one that Regina had already known before she asked the question. She frowned, wondering if she was destined to ruin every good thing that happened to her, when Emma sent her another message.

 _u know it's ok, right? u just met the dude. u don't have to let him move into ur house. this isn't the enchanted forest. u don't have to profess ur undying love just bc he's supposedly ur soulmate_

 _Supposedly?_

 _u know i think all that stuff is stupid_

 _And what if he's the baby's father?_

 _what if he is? then u can think about it again after the baby's born_

Regina read her messages a few times and felt a little guilty at how relieved she was that Emma was confirming what she felt, that it was too fast for this sort of commitment, baby or not.

 _Ok. Thanks._

 _welcome_

Regina put her phone away and started to get ready for bed. After a bath and her nightly routine, she checked her phone one last time and saw another message from Emma.

 _and those exercises i was telling u about are called kegels_

 _What exercises?_

 _for ur PUSSY_

Regina tossed her head back and laughed so loudly that Henry stuck his head into the room.

"What's funny?" he asked.

"Nothing, dear, I'm sorry," she said, even as she continued to laugh.

"Wow, I don't think I've ever seen you laugh that hard."

"It's your ridiculous mother," she told him. "She's a nitwit."

Henry grinned and said, "right. Night, Mom."

"Good night, darling."

She looked down at her phone and laughed again.

You're an idiot.

u love me

Regina bit her lip, still smiling, and thought that yeah, maybe she did.


End file.
